2013 Award Winners

Art Van Elslander opened his first Art Van store, a 4,000-square foot unit, in 1959. Art Van Elslander built his company with a deep understanding that “buildings are just brick and mortar, but the heartbeat of a company is its people.” Through empowerment and support, he has secured a unique loyalty from his employees.

His business savvy and ground-breaking practices have earned him the respect of the industry. His accomplishments have been highlighted through many awards including: 2009 Retailer of the Year by Furniture Today, the National Home Furnishings Association and the Michigan Retailers Association; and the Spirit of Life Award from City of Hope and the National Home Furnishings and Consumer Electronics Industry. He has also been inducted into the American Furniture Hall of Fame.

Giving back to the community is also a priority of Van Elslander. In 1990, he made a donation to Michigan's Thanksgiving Day Parade, saving the organization from a major financial crisis. Since then, he has been a major contributor each year to assure the parade's continued success, now known as America’s Thanksgiving Parade® http://www.theparade.org/.

His philanthropy reaches far and includes support for programs for those with disabilities, education for underprivileged youth, the homeless and others in need. Cancer research and research in ophthalmology are also among the areas receiving his assistance. He has made significant contributions to the Van Elslander Cancer Center, the Van Elslander Family Pavilion and the Van Elslander Neurosciences Center at St. John Providence Health System, the Van Elslander Center at St. Vincent De Paul and The David Hermelin Brain Cancer Center at Henry Ford Health System. In 2009, Art Van Furniture initiated the Art Van Million Dollar Charity Challenge, donating $5 million dollars in the form of challenge grants to 150 Michigan charities, including Forgotten Harvest, Gleaners Community Food Bank, and FocusHope. Van Elslander has also supported St. John Providence Health System, Henry Ford Hospital and the Helen Devos Children’s Hospital at Spectrum Health.

Van Elslander’s generosity has earned him nearly two dozen awards including 2012 Arab-American and Chaldean Council Lifetime Achievement Award, Ernst and Young Lifetime Achievement Award (inaugural winner), and 2010 Hospice Crystal Rose for Outstanding Community Leader to name a few. http://www.artvan.com/

Virginia Patton Moss was born in Cleveland, OH and now resides in Ann Arbor, MI. She attended The University of Southern California and the University of Michigan, and has been active with Cleary College as a member of both the Advisory Board and the
Board of Trustees. Cleary College conferred upon her an honorary degree of Doctor of Science in Business Administration. Presently, she is President and Director of the Patton Corporation, an investment and real estate holding company.

Her motion picture career began as a teenager for Warner Brothers and
Frank Capra, in association with Liberty Films, Inc. Playwright and film director, William C. deMille
(brother of the legendary filmmaker Cecil B. deMille), was an early supporter of the young Miss Patton while she was still a
freshman at U.S.C. Through his influence, she was recommended to audition for a part in Frank Capra’s upcoming film,
“It’s a Wonderful Life”. Virginia subsequently won the role of Ruth Dakin Bailey, the sister-in-law of
George Bailey (played by Jimmy Stewart); a role that would make her a part of motion picture history. It is worth noting
that she has the singular distinction of being the only cast member of “It’s a Wonderful Life” to have been personally signed by
Director, Frank Capra, for an acting role in that classic film. All other cast members were on loan from other studios.

In a 2012 interview, Virginia Patton Moss recalled the
atmosphere while working for Capra during the filming of
"It's a Wonderful Life": "When you were on the set, you knew your lines… you knew your business,” she said. “There was camaraderie,
but it was also a business. It was a wonderful atmosphere that some other directors didn’t produce.” The combination of
“camaraderie” and “wonderful atmosphere that some other directors didn’t produce” was the secret behind the movie-magic called:
“The Capra Touch”. Since the beloved Christmas film in which she appeared is now beamed via satellite to all five
continents each Yuletide, Virginia now humorously observes: “I’ve probably been in more homes than even Santa
Claus.”

After production of “It’s a Wonderful Life” ended, Patton would star in four additional films. In 1949, she
chose to marry Cruse W. Moss and start a family in Michigan. Although Capra was initially troubled about the
soundness of her decision, her clear resolve eventually won his
approval. In retrospect, Virginia entertains no regrets about
leaving Hollywood to become a wife and mother: “I have a
beautiful letter that (Capra) wrote me because I kept in touch with
him. He wrote: ‘I just knew you’d be a wonderful mother with three
little bambinos and a wonderful husband’.” Cruse
went on to a distinguished career as a highly respected automotive
executive (see current photo of Virginia Patton Moss
and her husband, Cruse Moss, below).

Revealing her lifelong love and knowledge of art and archaeology, Mrs. Moss is a Docent at the University of Michigan Museum of Art, member of the American Institute of Archaeology and has served on the Boards of both the Ann Arbor Society and the University of Michigan Kelsey Museum of Archaeological Associates. She also serves as a Trustee of the Ohio University’s Kennedy Museum of Art, and is active in the University of Michigan School of Music, where a Virginia Patton Moss Display Case features musical instruments in the Margaret Dow Towsley Wing. In harmony with her eclectic spirit, she is a member of the Ann Arbor Thrift Shop Association, National Farm and Garden Association, the Ann Arbor Garden Club, and served as President of the Ann Arbor Alumnae Association of Alpha Phi Sorority.

Mrs. Moss is a Presbyterian and active member of The First Presbyterian Church of Ann Arbor, and an associate member of the Moorings Presbyterian Church of Naples, FL.

From his earliest memories of coming down the stairs on
Christmas morning at his grandparents’ house in Texas, Adam C.
English has always been fascinated with Santa Claus. But not until
he traversed the Atlantic and visited the tomb of St. Nicholas did
he discover what was truly fascinating about Mr. Claus.

In his recently published book, The Saint Who Would Be
Santa Claus, religious historian Adam English tells
the true and compelling tale of Saint Nicholas, bishop of Myra.
Noted author, Greg Garrett, rightly summarized:
“Adam English’s real gift is in resurrecting, through his
painstaking historical detective work, a flesh-and-blood St.
Nicholas whose courage and Christian generosity are worthy of
emulation.”

Around the fourth century in what is now Turkey, a boy of humble circumstance became a man revered for his many virtues. Chief among them was dealing generously with his possessions, once gifting an entire family out of poverty with a
single—and secret—gift of gold, so legend tells. Yet he was much
more than virtuous. As English reveals, Saint Nicholas was of
integral influence in events that would significantly impact the
history and development of the Christian church, including the
Council of Nicaea, the destruction of the temple to Artemis in Myra,
and a miraculous rescue of three falsely accused military officers.
And Nicholas became the patron saint of children and sailors,
merchants and thieves, as well as France, Russia, Greece, and myriad
others.

"The Saint Who Would Be Santa Claus" by Adam C. English

Weaving together the best historical and archaeological evidence available with the folklore and legends handed down through generations, English creates a stunning image of this much venerated Christian saint. With prose as enjoyable as it is informative, he shows why the life—and death—of Nicholas of Myra so radically influenced the formation of Western history and Christian thought, and did so in ways many have never realized.

Besides nursing a growing obsession
with St. Nicholas, Adam C. English serves as
Associate Professor of Theology and Philosophy at Campbell
University in Buies Creek, North Carolina. At the university, he
enthusiastically introduces his students to the great texts and
ideas of the Christian tradition and regularly leads Study Abroad
programs to Italy. He has also published three books.

Ordained as a minister in the Baptist tradition, English served
as pastor to youth and children while in college and seminary. Once
– for the sake of the children! – he even dressed the part of Santa
Claus, complete with white beard and black boots. Toward the end of
his seminary training he began to feel that he might best fulfill
his calling to ministry in the classroom. He enrolled at
Baylor University to earn his doctorate and in 2003 traded
Texas for North Carolina in order to teach at
Campbell University.

He now shares the joys and wonders of Christmas with his ten year old daughter, Cassidy, and his lovely wife, Charissa, in Lillington, North Carolina. Next to his wife and daughter, the two things he loves best are long runs on sunny days and late-night talks with rowdy friends.

Possessing extraordinarily rare
gifts that betoken a true "Renaissance Man" in the field of entertainment, Rev. Rennie Kaufmann has distinguished himself professionally in a wide variety of venues for more than
two-and-one half decades. These have included: performances at numerous private parties hosted by Oprah
Winfrey, working with the legendary Quincy Jones, musical appearances at Walt Disney World, in addition to many civic
programs, corporate and private events; even appearances on television and radio.

Drawing upon his diverse
gifts over and over again, he continues to donate his personal time and talents to benefit many non-profit fund raising
events and charitable endeavors. While serving these
worthy causes, he delights countless audiences with his
warm, upbeat personality, sleight-of-hand magic tricks,
storytelling and improvisational performances that reveal a quick
wit and engaging sense of humor. To cite just one example of
his appeal, the U.S. State Department twice chose him as
a cultural envoy to Azerbaijan, thereby offering joy and
hope to many refugee camps, orphanages, entertainment centers and
embassies. At no small risk to himself, he likewise
shared his talents with a very active underground church in that
country (see photo of Rev. Kaufmann entertaining at a village
in Azerbaijan, below).

As a child, Kaufmann's home was
always filled with music."I grew up singing
and playing. I played piano at officers clubs and eventually did
private and corporate events," he recalls. "In addition,
I was always in worship arts-music and drama." The son of
a U.S. Army officer, Kaufmann spent his high school years
in Iran (before the revolution). During his 8 years
traveling around the world as an "Army brat", he was drawn to his
parents' love for history and archeology, while he lived
in Thailand. Subsequently, as a youthful 16 year old,
Kaufmann backpacked in Egypt and went on digs in Iran. He
even took advantage of the opportunity to visit Israel. As a result
of his wide ranging experiences, he developed a passion
and abiding respect for a wide variety of people,
cultures, cuisine, history, and diverse languages. Over
time, an ever-growing desire to share the Gospel to all nations
developed within him.

In time, he
graduate from Northwood University with a BBA (Management) and
continued his graduate work in theology at Michigan Theological
Seminary (now Moody Theological Seminary) and at
Concordia Theological Seminary, Ft. Wayne,
Indiana.

"Married to my best friend, Karen" (see photo, below), Rev. Kaufmann serves as associate pastor at Living Word (Lutheran) Church located in Plymouth, MI. God has blest he and his loving wife with five children:
Kyle, Joshua, Isaac, Luke, and Esther. Often, he enlists the talents of his entire family who join him in
entertaining others.

Nonetheless, it is his characteristic willingness to donate so much of his
personal time and God-given performing talents (both locally and worldwide) on behalf of the poor, the young, the elderly,
the marginalized, and the despairing that most clearly exemplifies Christ's admonition: "What you have received
as a gift, give as a gift" (Mt. 10:8b). His deeply caring nature,
coupled with a warm, upbeat, ever-youthful persona gives
joyful witness to the Christmas Spirit year-round. For,
as he likes to say, we are put on this earth to "Use
things and love people, not the other way around." It is
these self-evident qualities that continually serve as an
inspiration to all who have had the privilege of knowing
him.

Upon learning of Kaufmann's being selected
to receive this noteworthy recognition, someone candidly
expressed the sentiments of many: "We have followed you
for many years, and marveled at your continued contributions to
selflessly helping others. In view of your long, successful
and distinguished career, it is most appropriate to confer upon you
this Spirit of St. Nicholas Award. In fact, I cannot
imagine nor dream of a more worthy
candidate."

Dick Purtan was first drawn into
the world of broadcasting when: “My dad bought a
floor-model radio with an attached record player and microphone when
I was about six years old. I would plug in the microphone and
broadcast through the speaker. … [And] so I decided then and there
broadcasting was for me.” In time, Dick began his
career in his hometown of Buffalo, NY. He likewise worked at WOLF-AM
(Syracuse, NY) and WSAI (Cincinnati, OH);
WBAL (Baltimore, MD). Dick Purtan promptly won
over radio audiences after his arrival to southeastern Michigan as a
disc jockey for WKNR-AM (“Keener 13”) in 1965. His
quick wit and fresh sense of humor made him a top radio personality
at: WXYZ-AM, CKLW-AM and WCZY-FM (subsequently
becoming WKQI-FM). Following thirteen years at WKQI/Detroit, he
transitioned to WOMC in 1996. His show, “Purtan’s
People,” became Detroit’s top-rated morning program. Dick was an
inductee into both the National Association of
Broadcasters’ Broadcasting Hall of Fame (2006) and the
National Radio Hall of Fame (2004) (see 2004 photo of Dick
Purtan and his proud wife, Gail, right).

He was instrumental in establishing the very first 16 hour
“Dick Purtan Radiothon”, which evolved into
“The Salvation Army Bed & Bread Club Radiothon”. Purtan
continued this tradition until his retirement from radio and
Detroit’s WOMC FM 104.3 in 2010. Over the span of 24 years, these
radiothons raised over 25 million dollars. Monies raised help feed
more than 1.8 million persons, and shelter 148,000 people annually.
More than 5,000 meals are provided daily to children, adults and
seniors by The Salvation Army Bed & Bread
Program, which deploys trucks that make stops in metro Detroit's
most depressed areas every day of the year.

Dick Purtan on the Bed & Bread Truck

His dedicated service is further evidenced by a variety of charitable efforts and related honors. As a 30 year member of the Board of Directors for Children’s Hospital of Michigan, he’s raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to benefit that pediatric facility. Both he and his loving wife, Gail, were the recipients of the McCarty Cancer Foundation 2003 “Humanitarian of the Year” award for their contributions to cancer research. That same year, the Rotary Club of Detroit honored Dick with the
“Stanley S. Kresge Outstanding Philanthropist Award”. Utilizing Dick’s media exposure, the Purtans
dramatically increased the level of public awareness regarding Ovarian Cancer, and provided over $2 million dollars for the
Gail Purtan Ovarian Cancer Research Fund at the Karmanos Cancer Center and the Purtan Family
Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation. Old Newsboys’ Goodfellow Fund of Detroit honored both Dick and Gail with their 2009
“Edward H. McNamara Goodfellow of the Year Award”.

Over the
span of his 9 year career (1994-2002) as a valued member of
the Detroit Lions, Tony Semple played in 112 NFL
games (47 as a starter). During the course of Semple’s
professional career, the Detroit Lions experienced seven
coaching changes; beginning with Coach Wayne Fontes and
concluding with Coach Steve Mariucci. Although there were
challenges over that period, the Lions’ former offensive
guard treasures many fond memories of his NFL teammates,
including the rare opportunity of playing alongside football legend,
Barry Sanders. Tony was on the offensive line that helped
the future Pro Football Hall of Famer rush for an amazing 2,053
yards in 1997.

Sanders’ humility left a deep impression upon
Semple, who reflected: “I think what made me admire him more than
just his ability on the field, was his character off the field and
his demeanor. He wasn’t a show-boater, and he wasn’t a guy who was
always looking for the headlines.” The positive, self-effacing
character of Barry Sanders found echoes in the sentiments of Tony
Semple who, upon his retirement from professional football
reflected: “…It’s been a great journey and a great road for me.
It’s opened up a lot of doors. I used to think it was just for me
because I deserved it. But now I realize it was just a platform for
God.”

Shortly before the conclusion of his professional football career, Tony was approached by personal friend, Craig
Mortz, who recognized that his unique “platform for God”
could be used to help provide joy and hope to youngsters facing any
number of life-threatening illnesses. Mortz had been arranging
private hunting trips for challenged youngsters on his own, and
Semple quickly agreed to help out, when he could. As Mortz recalls,
“Tony would come to camps as a role model, and when he retired he
said: ‘We’ve got to take this to the next
step’.”

Eventually this led Semple and Mortz to create
the Tony Semple Foundation For Hope. Tony summarized
their objective: “We take kids that are suffering a debilitating
illness, a life deficiency. We take them hunting or fishing...
getting them into the great outdoors. I have a real passion for
hunting and fishing. I love to just work with kids that might not
have the means or opportunities to get out there
themselves.”

Noteworthy football stars like
Brett Favre, Adam Timmerman and Jeff Hartings
(another former Lion) have also participated. Since the NFL
sponsors hundreds of charities, the Tony Semple Foundation became
one of its top five grant recipients. In 2009, the Foundation was
named the National Football League Player Association’s Charity
of the Year. Generous financial support also comes from the
Detroit Lions.

Recently, in order to further clarify the
Foundation’s mission, the Tony Semple Foundation For
Hope was renamed the Foundation For Hope Outdoor
Adventures. Nevertheless, the Foundation for Hope
Outdoor Adventures continues to provide youthful campers who
usually spend much too much of their lives in doctor’s office and
hospitals, with an authentic, all-expenses-paid 3-4 day fishing or
hunting outdoor experience. www.tonysemplefoundation.org

Mindful of the words of Jesus, the Foundation For
Hope draws inspiration from Christ’s admonition: “Let your light
shine before men so that they may see your good works, and glorify
you’re Father which is in Heaven” (Matthew 5:16).